Donate Expired Coupons to Military Overseas

Ever look at your recent coupons to find you just missed the cut-off date? Instead of throwing expired coupons away, why not give them to our nation's heroes?

"Anyone that's overseas—any of our military bases—they're able to use expired coupons as long as they have commissaries,” explained Liza Ford from AddictedToSaving.com.

Military members stationed overseas can use these coupons up to six months after the expiration date. It's all thanks to a non-profit organization called "Overseas Coupon Program." Liza Ford has been a distributor for an Italian base since 2009.

Ford said, "It's an awesome way to pay it forward to our military. We're not using expired coupons—the stores here aren't going to accept them. So why not just send them a little bit further? Send them to me or a base you yourself adopt and bless other families with them.”

These small amounts are making a big difference in the lives of thousands of deployed soldiers.

Wounded Warrior and military veteran, Mark McDuffy, expressed,” It was always great whenever we were overseas to receive that care package. It keeps you motivated. It allows you to keep going through because not every day is going to be peaceful.”

You may think American coupons will not work in foreign countries, but they always accept manufacturer's coupons, giving our troops a little taste of home.

“Basically, you want to take the coupons you get in your Sunday paper,” explained Ford.

“They're putting 75 to 100 dollars back in their pocket. That means a lot,” stated McDuffy.

Donating is simple. Sort the coupons into food and non-food envelopes. Choose a military base on opcnet.org or visit addictedtosaving.com. Then, mail them off.

Ford explained, “Food is anything eaten by humans including gum. Non-food is toiletries, dog food, cat food—those are considered non-food as well. Sort them between the two categories, cut your coupons, and then send them over!”

It's a simple way to show our armed forces appreciation.

“We can't control everything that goes on, but if we just do our small part here in the tri-states then I feel like it will make a difference,” added McDuffy.

If you wish to adopt a base, visit opcnet.org and click the “base list” tab. Otherwise, mail in your sorted, expired coupons to:

Online Public Information File

Viewers with disabilities can get assistance accessing this station's FCC Public Inspection File by contacting the station with the information listed below. Questions or concerns relating to the accessibility of the FCC's online public file system should be directed to the FCC at 888-225-5322, 888-835-5322 (TTY), or fccinfo@fcc.gov.